The skin provides a barrier against germs, toxins, and radiation, but it also helps regulate temperature and water loss and acts as a vital sensory organ.
Serious injuries to the skin, in particular burns, are usually treated by transplanting a thin layer of epidermis, the top layer of skin, from elsewhere on the body.
Researchers from Linköping University in Sweden have developed bioprinting techniques – essentially 3D printing with biological materials – that could produce skin that replicates the structure of the dermis.
Getting these technologies out of the lab will be a long journey. But they bring us one step closer to an on-demand treatment for the most serious skin injuries.
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